Why play-for-pay college sports play to Tennessee athletics advantage | Adams

Tennessee fans abhor even the slightest increase in ticket prices. So the recently announced 14.5% price hike for football season tickets had to be jarring.

But it had to be less jarring when athletic director Danny White explained the reason behind it. A large percentage of the extra revenue will go toward paying student-athletes.

Tennessee isn’t an exception. Every school in the SEC will have to pay their share of the revenue that student-athletes help generate. That’s just how it goes in this play-for-pay era of college sports.

College football has become pro football. There’s no tiptoeing around that reality.

As distasteful as that might be to many Tennessee fans, they can find consolation in this: Moneyball plays to Tennessee strengths.

When name, image and likeness first became part of our sports lexicon, I expected it to benefit Tennessee. The UT fan base isn’t just large. It’s as passionate as any in the country. Moreover, some of those passionate fans have the resources to help finance successful sports programs.

After so many years without a championship, Tennessee fans also have become desperate to win at the highest level. Desperation is a great motivator.

So it was hardly shocking UT capitalized on NIL deals right away. That’s how they recruited five-star quarterback Nico Iamaleava from California.

There’s a big difference in NIL deals and revenue sharing, which has yet to be approved — though that approval should be nothing more than a formality at this point.

Revenue-sharing affects all players. But that’s just a baseline. NIL deals are separate. And they certainly aren’t for everybody. You want an elite quarterback running your offense? Then you’re talking about a seven-figure deal.

Not all schools can afford that. Tennessee can.

Something else in Tennessee’s favor: Its fans want to win at more than football. Why wouldn’t they? They just won a national championship in baseball and reached the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament in men’s basketball.

That kind of success could be the new normal in UT sports.

Never mind that the Vols lost star basketball player Dalton Knecht to the NBA. Coach Rick Barnes’ next team might be better than his last one. Watching the Vols in an open practice this offseason, I marveled at the size and athleticism of their post players. This group would have been better equipped to deal with a post player as big and talented as Purdue’s Zach Edey, who delivered a knockout blow to Tennessee in the Elite Eight.

Also, despite significant attrition in baseball, the Vols still might make another run at the College World Series. Coach Tony Vitello has proved he can lose most of his starting lineup and still field a formidable team the following season. You shouldn’t expect that to change.

College baseball will change, though.

ADAMS: If Tennessee football fans want a championship team, they need to help pay for it

When the proposed settlement in the House v. NCAA is finally approved, as expected, student-athletes not only would be guaranteed a share of the college sports revenue. They would have more access to full scholarships. Currently, baseball must divvy up 11.7 scholarships among 40-plus players. Under the new proposal, they might have more than 30 full scholarships.

Not all colleges will invest that much money in a baseball program. But UT will.

And Tennessee’s willingness to invest in all sports should pay off more than ever.

John Adams is a senior columnist. He may be reached at 865-342-6284 or john.adams@knoxnews.com . Follow him at: twitter.com/johnadamskns.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Why play-for-pay college sports play to Tennessee athletics advantage | Adams